In some current mobility deployments within fabric based networks such as shortest path bridging networks with MAC and MAC encapsulation access points terminate access tunnels on wireless switching plane. The wireless switching plane attaches to a fabric enabled network and establishes a mobility tunnel with peer wireless switching planes over the fabric enabled network.
Wireless switching planes advertise services to peer wireless switching planes over mobility tunnels. Mobility tunnels provide seamless mobility by extending the client networks with the help of a signaling plane. Within the wireless switching planes, client traffic is encapsulated using a header and the fabric network may apply policies to the encapsulated frame. Mobility services offered using the fabric enabled network may include transport only (e.g., establishing mobility tunnels over an SPBM network).
A need may exist for a signaling plane to extend a client network whenever a client roams. A fabric enabled network may need to apply policies to encapsulated tunnel frames. When traffic is roaming across the network, it may be required to traverse one extra hop through a VLAN server to reach the roaming client. Also, traffic disruption may occur during the VLAN server fail over as the signaling plane has to reelect a VLAN server and reprogram the new VLAN server in the data path.
Embodiments were conceived in light of the above-mentioned problems and limitations, among other things.